You Can Still Fly With a Power Bank—But Carrying and Using It Are Different

Yes. The available airline policies show no general ban on power banks. KLM, United, and Delta still permit restricted cabin carriage, although their limits for capacity, storage, use, and recharging differ. American Airlines limits passengers to two portable chargers of up to 100 Wh each Restricted items - American Airlines.

The practical distinction is between carrying a power bank and using it. An airline may permit the battery in the cabin while prohibiting overhead-bin storage, charging a phone from it, or recharging the power bank from aircraft power.

The short answer: these airlines still permit power banks in the cabin

This article provides a detailed, official-policy comparison for three airlines:

• KLM: Up to two power banks. Units through 100 Wh do not require advance permission; units above 100 Wh through 160 Wh require permission.
• United Airlines: Up to two portable chargers. Its policy applies a standard 100 Wh limit and also describes limited cabin carriage for batteries above 100 Wh through 160 Wh.
• Delta Air Lines: Up to two power banks, each no more than 100 Wh.

American Airlines maintains an official restricted-items page, but its exact power-bank limits should be checked directly before departure rather than treated as confirmed by this comparison.

A separate 2026 airline-policy roundup reports that these carriers also continue to permit power banks in the cabin under restricted conditions:

• Europe: Lufthansa, SWISS, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, Eurowings, ITA Airways, Edelweiss, and Air Dolomiti
• Middle East and Asia: Emirates, Singapore Airlines, Scoot, EVA Air, China Airlines, STARLUX Airlines, Thai Airways, Cathay Pacific, and Air Astana
• Australia: Qantas, Jetstar, and Virgin Australia
• United States: Southwest

That is a provisional list from secondary reporting, not a substitute for the airlines’ live policies. It does not establish one common capacity, quantity, storage, or use rule across those carriers. Check the operating airline’s dangerous-goods or restricted-items page for every flight, particularly on a codeshare.

KLM, United, Delta, and American Airlines compared

Policy review: September 2026. The detailed entries below are based on the available official-policy passages for KLM, United, and Delta. American Airlines remains a direct-check item because its full current policy wording was not available for equivalent verification. If any live airline page differs from this article, follow the live policy.

Airline	Cabin carriage and capacity	Required storage	Onboard use and recharging
KLM	Up to 2; up to 100 Wh without advance permission; above 100 Wh through 160 Wh with permission; over 160 Wh prohibited	Keep with the passenger; no overhead-bin storage	Using or charging a power bank onboard is prohibited
United	Up to 2 portable chargers; standard limit of 100 Wh; page also describes up to 2 batteries above 100 Wh through 160 Wh in carry-on baggage	On the passenger or in a personal item; not overhead	May not be recharged from aircraft power; the page does not establish a blanket ban on powering another device
Delta	Up to 2, each no more than 100 Wh; no larger-unit exception stated	Under the seat or in a seatback pocket; not overhead	No using or recharging during taxi, takeoff, or landing; cruise-phase permission is not established
American Airlines	Check the live restricted-items page for the current quantity and capacity limits	Confirm the permitted cabin location before travel	Confirm both device-charging and power-bank-recharging rules directly

KLM has the clearest complete rule of the three verified policies. A passenger may carry no more than two power banks, but each must remain accessible and outside the overhead bin. KLM also prohibits using the battery to power another device and prohibits charging the power bank onboard.

United likewise sets a two-charger limit and requires the chargers to remain on the passenger or in a personal item. Its page describes up to two batteries above 100 Wh through 160 Wh in carry-on baggage, but the available wording does not clarify United’s approval procedure. Contact the airline before bringing a power bank in that range rather than assuming it will be accepted.

Delta caps each power bank at 100 Wh and requires storage under the seat or in a seatback pocket. Its explicit use restriction applies during taxi, takeoff, and landing. The absence of a cruise-phase prohibition in the available passage should not be interpreted as automatic permission to use the battery during cruise.

For American Airlines, use the linked live page as a predeparture check. Do not rely on a third-party summary for an exact quantity, watt-hour ceiling, storage position, or charging rule when the operating carrier can change its policy.

Allowed to carry does not mean allowed to use

Treat an airline’s power-bank policy as four separate questions:

1. May the power bank enter the cabin?
2. Where may it be stored?
3. May it power a phone, tablet, or other device?
4. May the power bank itself be recharged from aircraft power?

KLM shows why those questions cannot be collapsed into one. A compliant power bank may enter the cabin within the airline’s quantity and capacity limits, but it cannot be stored overhead, used to charge another device, or recharged onboard.

United expressly prohibits recharging a portable charger from aircraft power. That restriction does not by itself establish a blanket ban on connecting a phone to the charger. A crew instruction or onboard announcement may still be stricter than the general policy page.

Delta expressly prohibits using a power bank to recharge another device, or recharging the power bank itself, during taxi, takeoff, and landing. Its available policy passage does not answer the separate question of use during cruise. Ask the airline or cabin crew instead of treating silence as permission.

Accessible cabin storage also makes it possible for crew to respond if a lithium battery overheats, expands, smokes, or burns. That general safety rationale does not mean every airline has adopted the same storage or use restrictions.

For context, an aviation news report says a passenger’s power bank ignited on KLM flight KL735 on September 18, 2026, after which the aircraft returned to Amsterdam. The account is a news report rather than an official investigation finding. It does not show that KLM banned cabin carriage, establish the cause of any broader policy change, or prove that other airlines follow KLM’s rules.

The adaptable approach is to pack the power bank as an accessible spare battery first and a charger second. Do not build your in-flight entertainment or arrival plan around using it unless the operating airline clearly permits that use.

Check watt-hours, not just milliamp-hours

Under the cited U.S. baseline, rechargeable batteries through 100 watt-hours are generally eligible for passenger aircraft. Power banks from 101 through 160 Wh require airline approval, with no more than two larger spare batteries per person. Batteries over 160 Wh are forbidden on passenger aircraft. Airlines may impose stricter capacity and quantity limits, so regulatory eligibility does not guarantee carrier acceptance, as the FAA’s passenger battery guidance explains.

Look for the manufacturer’s watt-hour rating on the casing. A readable printed marking is more useful at the airport than a calculation based on incomplete product information.

If the label provides voltage and milliamp-hours but not watt-hours, use:

Wh = volts × mAh ÷ 1,000

Examples:

• 10,000 mAh at 3.7 V: 3.7 × 10,000 ÷ 1,000 = 37 Wh
• 20,000 mAh at 3.7 V: 3.7 × 20,000 ÷ 1,000 = 74 Wh

Both examples are below 100 Wh mathematically. That does not make either unit universally acceptable. An airline can still impose a lower quantity limit, require accessible storage, decline a damaged battery, or restrict its use onboard.

Milliamp-hours alone are not a universal cutoff because the conversion depends on voltage. For that reason, a statement such as “anything below 27,000 mAh is allowed” is incomplete. Nor should any model be described as universally “TSA-approved”: checkpoint screening, aviation capacity rules, and individual airline acceptance are separate decisions.

Use this five-step power-bank packing check

1. Identify the operating airline. Look beyond the company that sold the ticket. A partner airline may operate the aircraft and apply its own battery rules.

2. Read the Wh label. Use the manufacturer’s printed watt-hour rating when available. If the casing shows only voltage and mAh, calculate the rating before leaving home. A missing or unreadable label can make the battery’s capacity difficult to verify.

3. Confirm quantity and approval limits. Check how many power banks the airline permits, its normal Wh ceiling, and whether it accepts larger batteries with advance approval. Approval under a general regulatory framework is not the same as approval from the operating airline.

4. Inspect and protect the battery. Do not travel with a swollen, punctured, damaged, or recalled battery that is likely to spark or generate dangerous heat. Protect the terminals against short circuits with the original packaging, a battery case, a sleeve, a separate protective pouch, or terminal tape.

5. Keep it accessible in the cabin. Power banks are spare lithium batteries and must travel in carry-on baggage rather than checked baggage under the cited U.S. aviation rules. If a carry-on is gate-checked or sent to the hold, remove every power bank first and retain it in the cabin.

Choose a location that also meets the airline’s own rule. Depending on the carrier, that may mean on your person, in a personal item under the seat, or in a seatback pocket. Do not assume an overhead bin is acceptable merely because the battery is technically inside cabin baggage.

If the power bank becomes unusually hot, expands, smokes, or burns, alert the cabin crew immediately. Do not conceal it in a bag or move it into an overhead compartment.

For a lighter and more adaptable carry-on, bring only the charging capacity you expect to need. One suitable, clearly marked unit is easier to inspect, retrieve, and remove during a gate check than several just-in-case batteries.

Recheck the operating airline before departure

On a codeshare, check the policy of the airline actually operating the flight—not only the carrier whose name appears most prominently on the booking confirmation. Your itinerary should identify the operating carrier for each segment.

For a multi-airline trip, repeat the check for every flight. A power bank accepted on the first sector may exceed a connecting airline’s quantity or capacity limit. Its required storage position and onboard-use rules may also change between aircraft.

Use this decision sequence:

1. Operating carrier
2. Watt-hour rating
3. Number of units
4. Any advance-approval requirement
5. Required cabin storage
6. Whether it may power another device
7. Whether it may be recharged onboard

U.S. security screening rules, the FAA passenger-battery baseline, and general international guidance do not override a stricter airline policy. Requirements can also differ because of the route or applicable local regulations.

Check once when planning and again shortly before departure. Standard power banks below 100 Wh remain eligible under the cited U.S. baseline and are accepted by the verified airlines subject to their own restrictions. The reliable packing strategy is to keep the battery clearly labeled, protected, accessible, and out of checked baggage—without assuming that permission to carry it includes permission to use it.